Has anyone else noticed that in the scene where Joyboy tells Aimee, "Well, off to baby..." Rod Stieger is saying something completely different and the "off to baby" is a clumsy post-dub. I've tried repeatedly to read his lips but I can't tell what the original line is. Something that offended someone, no doubt. Has anyone figured out what it might be?
shareIt seems to me that all of the dialogue in 'The Loved One' is looped and often looped badly. But the DVD has an English subtitle track that helps with discerning exactly what the actors lips might be mouthing while the looped audio says something other than what they actually mouthed at filming.
shareIt also may have been something as innocuous as Steiger flubbing his lines, but the take being so good(or the production pressed for time) that they opted to fix it in post-dub.
It's only a movie...
I have also always wanted to know what Joyboy was actually saying in that scene. I have watched that scene many times but I can't make out what he is saying. Are there any very good lip readers out there?
Maybe someone might have access to a copy of the original movie script- and then he or she could let us know what he was actually saying.
I don't know what Joyboy actually said either, but I just finished reading that scene in the book where the line is "Back to baby."
shareHate to break it to you, but the line is simply just, "back to work!"
It's a case of them ADDING something offensive, rather than subtracting something.
-J. Theakston
http://centraltheater.blogspot.com
It also seems that johnathan winters as the character Harry calls his evil twin Will, when he is obviously mouthing the name Al. I adore the camera work in this film for what it is, I think it broke barriers and set new standards for cinematography in this country, but the soundtrack definetely needed work.
shareIn my comment about the movie, I talked about the dubbing you mention, where Harry is saying "Will" on the audio track, but his lips are mouthing something else. In most cases it isn't clear, but there are a couple of times when he seems to be saying "Satan!"
I'm not a religious nut of some kind, didn't play acid-rock or heavy-metal LPs backwards looking for subliminal messages-- but the idea here definitely hit me, that the dubbing is a deliberate trick, taking advantage of the fact that you can show one thing with facial language, and cause the audience to hear something completely different.
Yes, in the months since posting that question I rewatched the movie and it suddenly was very easy to read the lips. Funny how you can try to lipread something a hundred times and fail, then look at it once and happen to get it. It is indeed "back to work".
shareYes. Turn the sound down and watch Steiger's lips. The line as originally filmed was "Back to work".
shareI've just watched that scene & Steiger (Joyboy) is definitely saying to Aimee (Comer) "...Off to baby" not "work". Regardless of what Waugh's original dialogue was Southern or Richardson must have changed it. It makes complete sense in the context of this scene. Joyboy's assistant interrupts his flirting with Aimee. He is informed that there are 2 new loved ones. Joyboy obviously wishes to remain chatting with Aimee & suggests that a colleague handle the incoming loved ones. However when it is explained that one is a baby he replies that his colleague should take the adult & he (Joyboy) will take care of the baby. Aimee is touched by his dedication & says something like, "You love the babys don't you?" He proudly agrees & then makes the comment "Well, back to baby." And leaves.
Perhaps there are several versions of this film? Would censors in 1965 have been upset by jokes revolving around dead babies? I'm not sure but it is possible.
The version of the film I watched today on TCM Steiger (Joyboy) definitely - without a doubt says the word "baby".
We're not talking about what was dubbed in, but what Steiger originally said. It's obvious from his lips that he simply says, "Back to work". "Off to baby" was dubbed in later.
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Mr. Joyboy says "Well, back to work".
shareFunny how they changed it from "off to work" to "off to baby".
The "off to baby" makes more sense, but Mr. Joyboy is clearly mouthing "work". To be a fly on the wall during the editing of this film. I'd love to see what other changes were made, in casting/dialogue, etc.
By the way, this film is on "Free On Demand" (TCM)on Time Warner Cable right now, I've watched it over and over this week, what a clever movie, so many funny details that are easy to miss.
Martha
Austin, Texas
back to baby is a lot funnier, and totally in character.
in a world where everyone has an opinion on everything, you get a lot of bad opinions - me
I would imagine that the original script read, "Back to baby", but that Steiger accidentally said "Back to work." Then when he was looping that part he said the original line.
shareI think the line "back to baby" originates from Waugh's novel. The dubbing looks bad because ALL of the dubbing in the movie is bad. (The scenes with Paul Williams, for example, are downright Godzilla-esque.)
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